Category: Action

The appropriations process is in full swing in Congress, which will determine Fiscal Year 2023 funding levels for historic preservation and we need your help! Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) are leading the bipartisan FY23 Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) Dear Colleague Letter in the Senate. The Senate letter, like the House letter, requests $200 million in funding for the HPF, the same level Preservation Action advocated for during Historic Preservation Advocacy Week and would be a record level of funding for the program. The request includes much-needed increases for State and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, which are expected to face increased workloads from federally mandated project reviews associated with the recently passed infrastructure bill, and increases to critically important competitive grant programs. The letter requests:

• $65 million for State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPOs)
• $34 million for Tribal Historic Preservation Offices (THPOs)
• $35 million for the Save America’s Treasures Grant Program
• $24 million for African American Civil Rights Initiative Competitive Grants
• $12 million for competitive grants for Historically Black Colleges and Universities
• $12 million for the Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grants
• $10 million for the Semiquincentennial Grant Program
• $5 million for the History of Equal Rights Competitive Grant Program
• $3 million for Underrepresented Communities Grants

The letter will be submitted to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies and marks a strong commitment to protecting our historic resources for future generations. Congress needs to hear from preservation advocates.

Reach out to your Senators and urge them to sign-on to the bipartisan FY2023 Historic Preservation Fund dear colleague letter being circulated by Senators Gillibrand and Cassidy. The more support we can demonstrate for the HPF, the better positioned it will be in the appropriations process.

If you have a personal contact in your Senator’s office, contact that person directly, especially if you just met with their office during Advocacy Week, and urge them to sign-on to the HPF dear colleague letter. If they do not handle Interior Appropriations please ask that they pass the message along to the Interior Appropriations staffer. Preservation Action has also made it easy for you take action. Check out our action campaign to easily edit and send a letter to your Senators today! Also be sure to share this alert with your networks. The deadline for signatures is COB, Monday, May 23rd. Take action today!

Urge Your Representative to Sign-on to the Bipartisan FY23 Historic Preservation Fund Dear Colleague Letter Today!

Congress is starting the appropriations process which will determine Fiscal Year 2023 funding levels for historic preservation. The co-chairs of the Historic Preservation Caucus, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Rep. Michael Turner (R-OH), are leading the bipartisan FY23 Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) Dear Colleague Letter in the House. The letter request $200 million in funding for the HPF, the same level Preservation Action advocated for during Advocacy Week and would be a record level of funding for the program. The request includes much-needed increases for State and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, which are expected to face increased workloads from federally mandated project reviews associated with the recently passed infrastructure bill, and increases to critically important competitive grant programs. The letter requests:

• $65 million for State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPOs)
• $34 million for Tribal Historic Preservation Offices (THPOs)
• $35 million for the Save America’s Treasures Grant Program
• $24 million for African American Civil Rights Initiative Competitive Grants
• $12 million for competitive grants for Historically Black Colleges and Universities
• $12 million for the Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grants
• $10 million for the Semiquincentennial Grant Program
• $5 million for the History of Equal Rights Competitive Grant Program
• $3 million for Underrepresented Communities Grants

The letter will be submitted to the House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee and marks a strong commitment to protecting our historic resources for future generations. Congress needs to hear from preservation advocates.

To maximize the impact of the letter, we need as many Representatives to sign-on as possible. Urge your Representative to sign-on to the bipartisan FY23 HPF Dear Colleague Letter being circulated by Representatives Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Mike Turner (R-OH) today! The deadline for signatures is COB, Friday, April 22.

If you have a personal contact in your Representative’s office, contact that person directly, and urge them to sign-on to the HPF dear colleague letter. If they do not handle Interior Appropriations please ask that they pass the message along to the Interior Appropriations staffer. Preservation Action has also made it easy for you take action. Check out the link below to easily edit and send a letter to your Representative today! Also be sure to share this alert with your networks.

Take action to Protect African American Burial Grounds!

Help us take action on the African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act, by reaching out to your members of Congress and urging them to co-sponsor this important bill!

Introduced by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) in the Senate, Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC) and Rep. Donald McEachin (D-VA) in the House, the bipartisan African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act (S. 3667/H.R. 6805) authorizes the National Park Service to establish a $3 million grant program to identify and protect African American Burial Grounds.

The protection and documentation of African American burial grounds have long been neglected. Many African American burial grounds are in a state of disrepair, inaccessible, or their locations are unknown. Providing federal resources helps ensure that these sites are preserved, documented, and maintained for future generations.

Urge your U.S Representative and U.S Senators to support and co-sponsor the African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act (S. 3667/H.R. 6805) TODAY!

If you have a personal contact in your Representative’s office, contact that person directly and urge them to co-sponsor the African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act (S.3667/H.R. 6805). Preservation Action has also made it easy for you to take action, use the link below to easily edit and send a letter to your Representative today! Also be sure to share this alert with your networks.

Take action to enhance the Historic Preservation Fund!

Urge your Representative to co-sponsor the Historic Preservation Enhancement Act (H.R. 6589)! Introduced by Rep. Teresa Leger-Fernandez (D-NM) and Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), this important bill makes long over due enhancements and updates to the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF). The Historic Preservation Enhancement Act would permanently authorize and fully fund the HPF. Authorization for the HPF is set to expire in September of 2023 and recent appropriation bills have exceeded the program’s authorized level of $150 million. This bill would:

• Permanently authorize funding for the HPF
• Increases authorization from $150 million to $300 million annually
• Ensures the HPF’s $300 million is appropriated for it’s intended purpose each year

Since 1976, the Historic Preservation Fund has helped to recognize, save, revitalize, and protect America’s historic places. For more than 40 years, the HPF has empowered states and local entities to preserve the buildings and sites that tell their community’s stories. Through additional grant programs like the African American Civil Rights Grant Program, the History of Equal Rights grant program, the Underrepresented Communities Grant Program, and others, the HPF is helping to tell a more diverse and inclusive American story.The HPF’s authorization has not been increased since the program’s inception in 1976 and is long overdue. This bill would provide much needed certainty to the states, tribes, and local communities that rely on this federal funding to carry out their critical preservation work.

Urge your U.S Representative to support and co-sponsor the Historic Preservation Enhancement Act (H.R. 6589) TODAY!

If you have a personal contact in your Representative’s office, contact that person directly and urge them to co-sponsor the Historic Preservation Enhancement Act (H.R. 6589). Preservation Action has also made it easy for you to take action, use the link below to easily edit and send a letter to your Representative today! Also be sure to share this alert with your networks.